Facebook wants to kill SMS passwords with Instant Verification

December 17, 2016

Facebook wants to make it easier for you to sign into all the other apps you have on your Android smartphone without having to wait for an SMS with a one-time password.

The social media juggernaut has introduced a new feature, called Instant Verification, to its developer tool Account Kit, which it claims can allow users to log into other Android apps by simply feeding their phone number.

The new addition doesn’t require people to enter a one-time password sent via text message or act on any push notification to get authenticated, till the time they are signed in to their Facebook account on their phone.

For authentication, the company says it now matches the phone number listed on a user’s Facebook profile, and if it is able to verify the person, it lets them sign into other apps.

Facebook says initial tests have shown a conversion rate of 97 percent. Facebook insists that it is not using this new feature to share any additional data with the app.

Facebook has been pushing its platform as the login interface for other services for years now. Though how soon people would be able to make use of it, if at all, also depends on whether developers make use of it.